The Rose in the Garden
by etakkate
Summary: This is my fix-it fic for season six.  How will we get B&B together again?  NOW COMPLETE! Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

**OK, so. basically, the start of season six has left me depressed like, _really_ depressed. I don't know how Hart is going to fix it - I am loving the idea of some fanfic writers particularly ShaViva's Everybody Leaves. It's perfect - check it out if you have not already. **

**This is my multichap fix it job! I hope you enjoy and _please _review if you do!**

**Hey, by the way - I don't own Bones.**

"So, how is Hannah?"

"...Beautiful..."

Brennan dropped her eyes at Booth's dreamy response and drew her focus outside the vehicle at the passing trees.

"I am quite aware of her physical attributes, Booth, but I was asking in reference to her physical health. Has she been experiencing nausea gravidarum? I have been meaning to call and ask her"

Booth tightened his grip on the wheel and turned a puzzled face to his work partner,

"Gravi... whatie?"

"Nausea gravidarum, Booth, morning sickness. Though I fail to see any correlation between the time of day and the nausea. The _nausea_ is actually brought on by the raised levels of oestrogen in pregnancy and, according to Angela is more likely exacerbated by fatigue than time of day."

"What the hell? Bones," he paused, "Hannah isn't pregnant!" He shook his head and returned his sight to the road, brows still furrowed in confusion.

"Hmm" Brennan gave a slight shrug and continued her gaze out the window as a thick silence fell upon the couple.

Finally becoming too much for him, Booth surrendered to his curiosity, flicking his sight from the road to Brennan nervously, "Why? Did she say something to you?"

"No. I have simply noticed a slight increase in her kinetic gait parameters. I may be wrong," the sudden halt in her sentence insinuated that Temperance Brennan is indeed _never_ wrong, "_but,_ an increase to that degree strongly suggests that Hannah has conceived and is significantly well along in her first trimester if not, further. Though, that seems highly unlikely given that she has only been in DC for three months."

"I am sorry if it has not been brought to your attention, I wrongly concluded that you were waiting the traditional 12 week period before sharing your news with friends though I would have thought that, being your partner and all, I would have been privy to your good news earlier than most"

Booth let out a nervous chuckle and shook his head, "Bones, like I said, Hannah is not pregnant! ...It's not possible" The last phrase was tacked on to assure himself more than Brennan that his girlfriend was most certainly _not_ pregnant.

"Well, Hannah assures me that you and her _are_ sexually active and, in that case – basic biology would suggest that it is indeed _very_ possible. Contraception is not foolproof, Booth. When was her last menstrual period?"

"What?" His head sprung around to face her, shock clearly written across his features, " Firstly, _Bones_, I am _not_ discussing Hannah's and my sex life with you!" he waved his hand dismissively in Brennan's direction, "whatever _girl talks_ you and her have going on" he pulled at his collar and gave another uneasy laugh – though it was clear to Brennan he was not happy, "and, secondly, her _cycle_ is none of your business!"

Brennan smiled knowingly and turned away, her and Hannah had become quite close friends since she had arrived in DC despite Brennan's pent up yet, growing jealousy of the woman. As long as Hannah kept Booth happy – Brennan was not about to admit her feeling for Booth to him, Hannah or anyone let alone herself. Besides that – Hannah was fun, personable and she had made an effort with Brennan where not many people would have.

"It's not abnormal that you don't know Booth. I imagine with your aversion to sexual topics that you would not be open about discussing her menstrual cycle either. It's quite common for that to be left as a taboo subject – particularly in the early stages of a relationship"

During their conversation, an amusing red glow had indiscreetly crept up his neck. As soon as it hit the tips of his ears, paired with the tense, clenching of his jaw and the white knuckles gripped to the steering wheel – Brennan knew that she had most likely gone too far and switched to damage control.

"I am sure I am mistaken though. I am sorry to have brought it up"

Silence bounced off the surfaces of the SUV and Booth's composure slowly returned. Pulling to an abrupt stop at the crime scene, Booth got out, rounded the vehicle and fell into place beside her.

"The _bones_, Bones, were found buried under a rose garden on the property. They were excavating the area to put in a pool when, what's believed to be a human skull was spotted by the construction manager in the excavator bucket"

"So, the scene was compromised"

"That's why I held off telling you until now." A tired yet charming hint of a smile graced his lips and Brennan felt herself immediately relax back into their comfortable rhythm.

"I don't see how delaying the knowledge of compromised forensics is of benefit to the investigation Booth."

She resumed her usual stance over the cranium, tilted her head up to see Booth, squinting as the sun caught her in the eyes, "Human... adult, as indicated by the dentition," returning her focus to the skull, her gloved fingers ran delicately over the mandible, "though, to get a more accurate assessment of age, I will need to make a more in depth assessment of the suture joints at the lab.

"Well-defined frontal eminences... the glabellar area is quite smooth indicating that it's most likely female." Pulling on the mandible, she tucked a finger inside what was once the mouth. "An unusually high palette suggests a congenital anomaly but we need to recover as much of the remains as possible to make an affirmative assessment and diagnosis."

"Ok, you know the drill, everything to the Jeffersonian, people!" Booth sang out to no one in particular. Flipping his notebook shut with a flick of the wrist, he left Brennan to it and went to question the construction manager – an anxious tension gnawing at his gut as he pondered his' and Brennan's earlier conversation.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the awesome response to this story! It's kinda like the old pick a story books – remember those? I have a couple of ideas of which way to go but I guess it will depend on my mood. Either way, Hart sort of put us fan-fickers in a bit of a pickle and it may get a tad angsty before we see the fireworks but we shall get there! Please turn a blind eye to any technical errors (I am not an anthropologist or a hot FBI agent) and please keep reviewing – it really motivates me!**

**I don't own Bones – but I do **_**have**_** bones – very good ones actually **

It was dark by the time they returned. Brief conversation was shared on the hour and a half drive back – fragmented, rudimentary and growing increasingly awkward. The blanks were filled with an oppressive, heavy silence that the partners both found oddly uncomfortable for different reasons that neither quite understood.

Brennan silently cursed her social inadequacies as it was becoming glaringly obvious that Booth was brooding over the information she shared with him about Hannah and, for the life of her, Brennan had no idea of why. Why wasn't he happy about it? Wasn't that what he wanted - a beautiful, devoted wife and children?

To Brennan's great envy, Hannah was most certainly 'beautiful wife' material and anyone with any sense of perception would see that she was devoted to Booth. That solid fact alone was what Brennan clung to in her effort to restrain herself from telling Booth the truth about how she felt. His 'moving on' had clearly demonstrated the transient nature of love and proved the exact reason she denied a relationship with him in the first place – she would just patiently wait it out until it abated.

Perhaps he simply didn't trust Brennan's assessment – either way she felt annoyed at his demeanour and couldn't seem to convince herself of the irrationality of her aggravation.

When they pulled up at the lab Brennan barely waited for the SUV to stop before she was out of the vehicle and into the familiar white glow of the platform. Dr Clark Edison was eyeing the bones that were exhumed from the rose garden with a somewhat puzzled look.

"What have we got Dr Edison?"

"Dr Brennan." He nodded a greeting, "I have identified thoracic trauma. It may be cause of death but, that was not the first thing that struck me as unique about this particular set of remains"

She pulled on a glove and brought a phalanx up for closer inspection, "I see that, Dr Edison. And what is your conclusion based on these anomalies in particular"

"The limbs are unusually long, and there is an abnormal but slight indentation of the sternum most likely a congenital abnormality. As far as: _what_... I am looking into that as we speak."

"Did you notice the high palate?"

"No, no, I haven't." He tucked his finger up inside the skull to feel the hard palate. "The remains only arrived 15 minutes before you did Dr Brennan."

She held a set of calipers up to the victim's pubic bones, "The extreme degree of separation of the pubic symphysis indicates a..."

"Very recent childbirth, yes."

She pointed at the corresponding bones as she continued, "Scoliosis, bilateral flat feet. I think you'll find our victim had Marfan syndrome Dr Edison."

"Of course!" He palm-slapped his forehead, "That would most definitely explain her tall stature."

"What would explain her tall stature?" Flipping his phone shut, Booth swiped access to the platform and took two steps at a time to reach them.

Brennan turned to the direction of his unexpected voice. She landed almost nose to nose with Booth and blinked in reaction to his sudden close proximity. Dizzying at the smell of his unique blend of cologne and 'Booth', she felt her face betray her and reddened in response. "Marfan Syndrome." She retorted with Brennan-like abruptness. Without breaking from their locked gaze, Brennan snapped off her glove between their bodies and tossed it in the trash before she turned and briskly walked to her office.

Clark did his best to hide the wily smile that snuck upon his face. Muttering to himself, he shook his head, "Like I said, get each other _naked_ already!"

"Okay... care to elucidate Bones? How tall was she and how is that relevant?"

"6 foot 2. She had very recently given birth. Thoracic trauma indicates possible cause of death, though; I will have to investigate closer to get a definitive conclusion on that, as also with the relevancy of the victim's genetic disorder. I will be sure to inform you of any progression that I make. Dr Hodgins will start narrowing down a time of death in the morning but I estimate between ten and 20 years"

She sat down, straight backed at her desk and gave him an impatient, questioning look.

"Right, good, so, I-ahh... had Charlie run an ownership search on the property. The current owners, Geoff and Jade Hicks bought the place two months ago..."

He made himself comfortable on Brennan's couch and added expressively, "...for a _steal_"

'For a steal? I don't..." Brennan looked confused.

"Dirt cheap, Bones. They payed next to nothing for it. Well, $450,000 isn't exactly 'nothing' but it is much less than what the surrounding properties have sold for recently. It was registered through the solicitors as a private sale"

"..."

"The property's original title was in the name of," he looked at his note book and Brennan held back the desire to smile at the irony of him _squinting_ to read his writing, "Robert James Gossell. He died in 2001 and left it to his daughter Amelia Rose Gossell. She sold it to Geoff and Jade. I say we have a chat to the new home owners and see what they have to say"

"I imagine we will be _chatting_ to Amelia too – it's not as if we have a great deal to go on"

"Dead right Bones," He slapped his note book on his open hand in a resolute motion and stood up, "but, it's late and I have gotta go have me a chat of a more personal nature so, it's gonna have to wait till morning. Maybe the squints'll have more forensics to go on in the meantime. I'll see you bright and early hey?"

"Ok... So... I hope your _chat_ goes well. I'm assuming it will be with Hannah." She averted her gaze to the ground and continued, "I'm really happy for you Booth." Looking him in the eyes, she smiled and barely hid the wistful tone, "Congratulations."

"Yeah...well... we'll see... I'll ah, see you tomorrow." Booth took two steps to the door and turned back as an afterthought. Walking backwards, he pointed the note book at her and smiled the smile that told her he still cared, "Don't stay up too late Bones."

With a wink, he was jogging out the door leaving a very confused and poignant_ Bones_ in his wake.


	3. Chapter 3

**Well, wasn't tonights episode just heartbreaking! **

**This chapter is a bit angsty but - it's like ripping a bandaid off - it has to be done people. Don't worry though, there's a lovely set of lips just waiting patiently to kiss it all better when the time is right. **

**Oh, and thanks to bonesandcastle for pointing out my freudian slip - it seems I miss Zac Addy a little too much and morphed his surname with Clark's in the last chapter. **

**I am quite nervous with this as it is quite a delicate topic so, please reassure me with reviews if you feel so inclined - I really really appreciate them!**

**I don't own Bones. **

Booth stepped hesitantly through the threshold of his front door. The living room light was on but the television was off and there was no sign of Hannah. He knew she would be in bed already. The early nights, the sudden aversion to coffee and her unusually teary response to the Huggies ad on television that morning had alerted him to the very high possibility of a pregnancy.

It was Brennan's ever-rational observance that pushed his suspicion over to the cold, hard land of reality.

He was completely _enjoying_ being with Hannah. She was truly a lovely girl – open, easy to love and loads of fun. But – a baby? A _baby!_ That was a whole _other_ aspect of a relationship that he had honestly _not_ considered.

His first and foremost goal at the very beginning of their relationship was to 'move on' and get over Temperance. Though coming back to DC had put a rather large spanner in that works, Hannah was nonetheless doing a pretty sufficient job of at least distracting him. Over the course of their romance – it had developed into something deeper than just fun but, by no means was he thinking 'wife, kids and white picket fence' just yet.

As much as the whole situation confused him – Booth was most definitely excited about being a Dad again. He pulled off his shoes and draped his jacket over the sofa. Walking softly down the hall, the corners of his lips turned up reflexively at the thought of a little baby. A little _Booth _baby.

At the end of the day, all these reservations, all these doubts – he just _knew_ that they would all get ironed out and smoothed over when Hannah and he saw their little baby. He knew from experience that all that other _crap_, the relationships side of things that keep us busy worrying, melt away and pale into insignificance when you get to hold your child.

He, tapped his lamp on, stripped down to his boxers and eased his way into the bed. Failing to hold the smile of joy, pride and excitement at bay, his hand snaked tenderly across her exposed belly. Pressing his lips to her neck, he gently pulled her hip so that she was lying on her back.

"Seeley" Hannah gripped his hand and pulled it to her lips, squinting sleepily at the dim lamplight. "What are you doing?"

"You got something to tell me, Baby?" He swept the blonde curl from her face and then resumed stroking the warmth of her belly.

She flinched slightly and rolled back to her side. Nuzzling her back into his chest, she tucked his hand softly but resolutely between hers and the bed. "What do you mean?"

"Hannah? Baby? why didn't you drink your coffee this morning?" he stroked his stubbled cheek affectionately over her face, "...or yesterday morning?" He nibbled at her earlobe, "...or, all last week?" His deep, soothing voice reverberated through her conscious as he kissed the spot where her ear met the top of her neck.

She laughed lightly and strained her head to look at him, "What are you? The coffee Natzi? You wake me from a vividly wild dream to ask me about coffee? You really are something else, Seeley Booth. You know that, right?" She brought her hand around and ran it down his face, brushing his bottom lip with her thumb.

Booth softly cupped her face and smiled. Lowering his head so that his nose was a hairs breadth away from hers, he chuckled, though the smile didn't quite make it to his eyes, _was she deliberately playing dumb? Why was she hiding it from him?_

"How many weeks along are you, Hannah?"

Even in the dim light he could see her eyes dilating in shock. "When were you going to tell me?"

"Seeley, I was, I just..." She shucked him off gently and sat up against the bed head, "I just needed some time to process it"

He backed up next to her, smiled and gave her a warm sideways nudge, "I guess we can process it together hey? How far along are you?"

"About eight weeks." She smiled somewhat sadly.

"Hannah, I _am_ happy about it – if you're worried. I mean, I know it's not ideal circumstances but... I love _being _with you... and... a baby, phew," he shook his head with a smile, held her hand then gently jolted it with his next exclamation, "A baby, Hannah, a little 'Us', a..."

"Ok, Seeley, stop!" she tentatively claimed her hand back and placed them both in her lap. In more of a controlled voice she continued, avidly avoiding his line of vision, "I didn't _tell_ you because I _knew_ you would react like this. And it would only make me feel more..." Her chest heaved involuntarily with a sob, "more guilty..."

He resisted the urge to comfort her – he knew the importance of taking a hint from a pregnant woman.

"I can't do it, Seeley! You know what my job involves and I am just not the type of woman who can give all that up to be a mother. I'll end up resenting it! I know I will." The tears forged a strong path down her face and she tried to focus on the dark patch they were making on her sweat pants rather than the ominous silence that was filling the room.

As emotionally level as he could manage he spoke, "What are you saying, Hannah"

Almost as a plead she answered, "Don't make me say it, Seeley. I... just... please pretend it never happened, you don't have to know anything more... Your conscience is clean." The last phrase was spoken so quietly that it took a moment for it to register with him.

As soon as it did, he was on his feet. "That's bull, Hannah and you damn well know it!" Pacing the room the panic began to rise as he contemplated what she was proposing, "Listen, if it's confidence you're lacking – then there's no need. I saw you with those kids over there – it's one of the first things that attracted me to you – you're a natural, Hannah, you're great with kids! Parks just loves you! There's nothing that you haven't done that you haven't done well. Being a mother is no different"

Despite his desperate attempt at reassurance, she prickled, "It's not that, Seeley! It's just not what I _want_!"

"Then, what? You lied to me? You told me you wanted kids!"

"I did! Though my exact words were, I want kids 'someday'- _someday_! Not now! My career is only just beginning, it took years to set that up Seeley, you have got to see that! I don't want my kids to think that they ruined that for me."

"What about Parker? If anything ever happened to Rebecca, I just... I guess I should have never assumed but, what then? Would that ruin it for you too? I _am _a father, Hannah. If things get serious between us – as they seemed to be getting, the simple truth is that he could live with me someday in the nearer future. Are you ready for that?"

She shot him a dirty look, "I don't know... yes... I guess. I'd like to think so. You just do what you gotta do Seeley – I am sure if something happened to Rebecca then we would take Parker – you know I think the world of him"

"Yet not _our_ baby"

Booth winced at the hurt that crossed her features and his tone softened, "Look, I'm sorry. What about... what about adoption? or I could be the main man and you could keep at it, or we could..."

"No! Seeley." She took a deep breath and released it slowly through pursed lips, in an effort to curb the tears, " I have thought it through... I have _agonised_ over it – this was not an easy decision for me Seeley – just, _please_ respect that."

He sighed and sat, exhausted at the end of the bed, "I could, Hannah, if it was only about you. But, it's not. It's about 'Us' – a little 'Us'. He looked up at her with beseeching eyes, "Just... please, _please_ hold off for another week, let me toss a few things around in my head first – you've, at least had time to think about it. Just... give me that much, ok?"

Her jaw clenched in frustration, "I might go find a motel for tonight. I think we both need some space." She rolled off the bed in one swift motion and stood up. He stood to meet her and gently held her by the shoulders. They were both completely and utterly drained but he knew that in addition to that she was the one bearing most of the emotion and guilt not to mention the hormones.

He sighed, "No, you stay here. I'll take the couch at Jared and Padme's" She hesitated, "It's still pretty early, I am sure they will be awake. Just... Hannah... don't rush into anything, ok? I am with you all the way if you keep this baby – I've got your back and I promise you – we _can_ make it work. Don't doubt - I am _all_ in."

Hannah regarded him for a moment or two - trying to gauge the true meaning of his words before she averted her eyes to a random spot on his bedroom wall. She shook her head as the tears rushed to her eyes again and gave a cynical, sad breath of a laugh, "So, it comes down to an ultimatum, huh?"

The hum of the DC streets below, the solemn look on Booth's face and the moist glaze over his eyes was just the affirmative answer she needed to cut the conversation right where it stood. It was clear they would never agree - as clear as it was that the fate of their relationship rested entirely on her hands or, more to the point, in her belly.

"Right, well, I'm going to go have a shower. Goodnight Seeley."

As the door slammed shut behind her, so did a once hopeful chapter in the life-book of Special Agent Seeley Booth.

He just thought it would have had a higher word count than it did.


	4. Chapter 4

**I have many plot ideas for this story though i'm relying on your feedback to get an idea of what you want so please let me know! I am really appreciating the feedback - please stick with it - it'll start to get better from now on - I promise! Thanks for bearing with me!**

**I don't own Bones**

When Booth made an early appearance at the Diner to collect a coffee, wearing the same clothes as the day before, Brennan's ever attentive mind quickly came to a distressing conclusion. Her anxiety grew with each piece of evidence reflected in her friend's demeanour; the expressionless face, the sluggish posture, the restricted, seemingly painful gait – translating to Brennan as a night most likely spent on the couch.

Indisputably, Booth's _chat_ with Hannah had not gone well.

As his eyes met hers – he felt a small glimmer of comfort. Powered as if by a mind of their own, his legs got him to where she was sat at their table and he managed a weak smile before sitting himself down across from her. Not knowing what to do with her eyes and feeling unusually nervous, Brennan looked down at the coffee that was warming her hands.

"Hey, Bones, you're up early"

"I could say the same for you Booth. I know that you are not typically a morning person." She snuck a look at him through the veil of her lashes and noticed his expression barely changed though his eyes dropped to the table.

"I am concerned that it may be related to your _chat_ with Hannah..." She paused, then hesitated, "Though I may not know exactly what to say, Booth... you are very welcome to talk with me about it. I am quite good at listening and have been advised on a number of occasions by Dr Sweets that it can be rather cathartic to discuss matters that have a direct impact on your personal life"

Booth smiled – genuinely touched by her nervous attempt to reassure him. On the edge of his conscious thoughts, he wondered why Sweets would have advised her to talk on numerous occasions though it didn't hold enough weight, in light of his problems to warrant questioning her about it.

"Thanks Bones, you're right."

"I was simply repeating Dr Sweets' statement as I know you hold credence to the soft science of psychology so, I take no credit for its' accuracy, however, I do feel it holds some truth..."

"No, I mean – you're right. About Hannah – she's pregnant."

"Oh... well, I know _ideally_ you would want to be married to have another child though, I would have imagined, given the fact that you are a very skilled father that you would be showing more classic signs of happiness for your impending fatherhood"

"Well, that's just the thing. She's insistent on, you know," He rolled his hand to try and extract the term from her, though, obviously, she sat there – eyebrows raised, patiently waiting for him to just spit it out, metaphorically speaking.

"terminate... She doesn't want to go through with it."

"Ohhh!" Her tone was drawn out in realisation. Temperance's gaze involuntarily returned to the table before she thought to shift eyes back to study the minute manifestations of thought written across his face – expressions that she had come to decipher so well over the last seven years. For someone who had a limited natural understanding of body language and gesticulations, Brennan had come to rely somewhat on Booth's reactions as her compass for navigating her way through the interpretation of such an incoherent and confusing world. She derived a certain comfort from it and an intimacy that she would never share the knowledge of with him, despite her dependency on it.

"...yeah..." It was the first time an official term was used for what was the apparent fate of his baby and it felt unsettling to admit it out-aloud as reality hit home.

"Abortion really is a paradox for both the evolutionary progression and your theory of creation Booth. With the survival of the fittest – it's only natural that a mother would do anything to secure her bloodline and, well," registering the hurt in his eyes, her tone softened, "Booth, I understand that you would be quite disturbed by your religious conscience. I am sorry – it is quite unexpected."

"Oh, Bones, it's not just that. It's just... it's my baby in there you know? A little miracle"

"Has Hannah considered adoption?"

"I suggested it but, no. Even that – I would be happy with."

She brought her coffee up to her lips, "I have recently enquired about adopting, Booth"

"Really?" He was honestly surprised.

"Really. I would be quite willing to adopt this baby should it in anyway have Hannah reconsider her intention to abort"

He gave a disbelieving laugh, "Bones, that's not something that you don't give serious thought to! I mean – I am really touched that you would even consider it but, really, you've known of the situation for, what? Ten minutes?"

"Booth, you seem to forget – I was, only recently, quite willing to have _your_ child, I am more than willing to adopt, if I could get through the red ribbons associated with international adoption. It would be an ideal fix for your worried conscience, Hannah's aversion to motherhood, my desire for progeny, and... the embryo or foetus that you so affectionately, though incorrectly call a baby. I don't make suggestions that I don't fully intend on following through, Booth. You know that."

Booth was beyond flabbergasted. He sat, wide and wet-eyed, processing his thoughts before shaking his head in wonder, "Bones – you say you don't have an open heart," He smiled tenderly, shaking his head again, "I say you've got so much damn heart – you just... you just don't know what the hell to do with it."

Once again she surprised Booth by completely ignoring his use of the exaggerated and greatly debated _heart_ metaphor and... _where those tears in her eyes?_ She avoided his sight, "I _am_ learning Booth." She paused, a ketchup smudge on the tablecloth holding her interest as she continued, slowly and thoughtfully, "Though I never held any interest nor _desire_ to develop my knowledge base on the metaphorical heart or _love_, I find myself responding irrationally to the concept. It's actually quite confusing and I incorrectly assumed that an extended amount of time away from certain stimulus would have resolved it to some extent."

She caught herself before she went too far and gulped her remaining coffee before getting up from the table, "so, were you able to locate Amelia Gossell, Booth?"

He respected her diversion tactic and fell in step beside her, resisting the overwhelming desire to 'guy' hug the crap out her, "Ah, no Bones, I thought I would talk to the owners first, though, you're probably right, I'll get Charlie to pull her details. Let's see how Hodgins is going with time of death and we can take it from there hey?"

"Ok Booth."

They made their way wordlessly. Just as Booth and Brennan were about to enter the lab, she stopped and without making eye contact she said, "Just so you are aware, Booth, giving the imminent action that Hannah intends to take, if you don't discuss my offer with her this morning – I will call her myself."

He smiled and gave her a reassuring sideways glance, "thanks, Bones."

Never had so much emotion filled those two simple words of appreciation.


	5. Chapter 5

**This chapter is for Southunlady - I hope it comes as some comfort, lol )**

**I don't own Bones!**

"Hannah Burley"

"Hannah, it's Temperance. How are you feeling?"

"I'm good, Tempe, how's things with you?"

"I'm well thank you. I am phoning to see if Booth has spoken to you?"

"I haven't heard from him since last night and, honestly Temperance, given the way _that_ went, I don't expect to hear from him for quite some time. Why do you ask?"

"I believe it was his intention to share a recent development in his thoughts relating to your pregnancy. He has been trying to contact you though; perhaps there was a problem with your phone?"

_Or I was avoiding him?_ Hannah let a disparaging laugh slip across the line, "I should have known he'd tell you."

Typically unaware of Hannah's acerbic tone, Brennan countered conversationally, "_I _informed _him_ actually – I have very good observational skills. When are you due, Hannah?" Suddenly nervous at the question that slipped out unchecked, "That is to say... if you were to _have_ the baby... when would you be due?"

Hannah shook her head. Temperance's attempt a girl talk was laughable to her. She really couldn't be upset with someone so... naive. Hannah knew she was harmless, though, it was almost pathetic to her how obviously infatuated Temperance was in Booth. Almost feeling sorry for her, she had played along with it from the beginning – at least making a little effort with her boyfriend's partner.

"I had a scan this morning and I am farther along than I thought. Even more ironic is that it's due on Booth's birthday. Though, he must have told you that I was having second thoughts. I guess, seeing it this morning has made me slightly hesitant though."

Brennan's brain ticked over at its' normal, supersonic speed and a revelation soon became glaringly obvious, "Hannah, _Angela_ is 16 weeks pregnant and she is due the day before my birthday. Angela was five weeks pregnant when she arrived back in DC. _Booth's _birthday is one month from mine – same date – the 26th. By those calculations, the conception of your baby fits quite easily within the window of time that you were in Afghanistan and Booth was here in DC -making it quite impossible for him to have successfully inseminated you!"

"Yes, I was pregnant in Afghanistan." Hannah continued with a patronising edge to her voice, "Though, according to the dates, you will clearly see that I was _three_ weeks pregnant when I arrived back in DC and I can assure you Temperance, Seeley and I were quite sexually active _three_ weeks before I left for DC."

Brennan did not back down, "You see, Hannah, that's why you're a reporter and not a scientist. Had you been intelligent enough to be a scientist, you would understand that it is a common misconception that how many weeks you are into a pregnancy corresponds to the date of conception but, in fact it is dated back to your last menstrual period. So, in reality, the embryo that you were carrying upon arriving back into DC was in the very beginning of its' development – more than likely one week beyond conception!"

_**...Busted...**_

_OK, damage control,_ "Tempe..."

"No, Hannah! You gave me your _word_ that you were sure about Booth! I find that I am more than furious! You make him believe that he is the father of your child and then you tell him, despite his strong moral code that you want to terminate! He is beside himself with worry! This is going to devastate him!"

"I didn't make him believe anything! He just assumed and I still thought at the time that I was only two months along. Though, given the double contraception – you would have thought he would put two and two together."

"Booth trusts you completely, Hannah. Most likely, his reasoning around the issue of contraception would have involved his fanciful belief in miracles and fate– He would not have imputed bad motives on you – he is not that type of person."

"You can't say anything about this Temperance. I am aware of Seeley's..."

"You are aware of _nothing_ Hannah Burley! Either you tell him or I will. I have held my tongue the whole time that I have seen you with him because it seemed to me that you were good for Booth. He was _happy_. And I _trust_ his judgement. I thought that you were a genuinely good and pleasant person. And so, I observed, as _unpleasant_ as it was for me, and I went on with being his partner and friend – even pulling back so that you could give him what I couldn't. But, I have _never_ seen Booth look as defeated and upset as I did today."

"It was a mistake Temperance..."

"Damn right it was a mistake!" A wave of nausea hit her as the thought of Hannah cheating on her friend went through her mind and she wondered briefly when her _feelings_ on monogamy had changed so dramatically.

Brennan paced her office warring against the irrational desire to punch something or vomit. Realising that she could not continue the conversation without completely losing her composure, she concluded the call with a deadline, "You have until 6pm this evening to tell Booth the truth. If you _ever_ see me again, Miss Burley – I advise for you own safety that you turn and walk away."

With that, Brennan ended the call, threw her phone onto the couch and turned to exit her office when she came face to face with a very concerned Angela.

"How much of that conversation did you hear, Angela" Brennan's pent up anger escaped a little and ended up coming out as a snap - startling her friend. "I am sorry, Ange, I am more than angry and am having difficulty restraining it"

"I heard enough, Sweetie, more than enough actually. I think you were a little louder than you think, though, don't worry – I stood guard and no one else heard" _at least I don't think so. _Angela put her hands on her hips and disbelievingly added, "So, Hannah did the dirty on _our_ Booth, hey? Wow! The poop is, most definitely gonna hit the fan!"

"I really can't see the correlation between your comment and the current situation, Ange, though, yes, Hannah all but admitted to having sexual relations with someone else while Booth came back home. If that is what you mean by _doing the dirty. _She is consequently due a month after you and is considering not continuing with the pregnancy. Booth is..." she shook her head sadly and fought the tears that threatened, "Ange, Booth is really upset. Despite my non involvement in the situation, I find that I am reacting on a physical level to this problem and I am unsure how to fix it. I can only imagine how he will react when he finds out."

Brennan slumped back onto her couch picked up her cell phone and ran her fingers over the buttons.

"Oh, sweetie," Angela flopped down beside her friend and lowered her head in an effort to get eye contact with her, "No-one said that love was easy"

Brennan didn't take her eyes of her phone, "And_ I_ don't seem to remember anyone mentioning _love _either, Ange."

"Well, that's just a given, Honey. Look... Booth will work it out, most likely come to his senses, by which time you might be willing to admit your feelings for him and you two can then put an end to this heartbreaking dance around the truth."

She sighed, wondering if the effort of restraining her feelings was worth it, "I don't know what you mean, Angela."

"No, of course you don't. And, in case you're wondering – yes, I am being sarcastic. You can look at this situation two ways, Bren. You can continue this miserable excuse for an existence – trying to act indifferent as Booth goes from one fake relationship to the next or you can look at Hannah as the catalyst for you realising and admitting to the fact that you are in _love_ with Booth."

Brennan let out a ragged, tired breath, "I know"

"And don't even think of denying it, Brennan... say what?"

"I know... I know! I am not going to think about that at the moment though, Ange. Booth needs time to grieve, that is, if he actually decides to end his relationship with Hannah. In actual fact, I don't even know if he still has feelings for me and that scares me more than I would like to admit." She rested her head on the back of the couch and stared up at the ceiling, "I am just so exhausted Ange – even though I have done minimal physical activity today."

"Oh, Sweetie, I guarantee that with your little admittance there, you moved mountains today! I am proud of you, Bren." She gave her friend the most radiant smile she could and nudged her shoulder, "Look at you – all grown up!"

Brennan gave a half laugh, half sob and they sat in silence for a good five minutes before Booth walked in and disturbed the friends' calm, reflective moment.

"Bones, I got Amelia's details, let's go!"

As two sets of eyes looked to his direction, one with an expectant glow and the other, considerably more beautiful, with the obvious remnants of tears, he hesitated, "OK, D&M in progress?"

Brennan scrunched her eyebrows in confusion and Angela smiled as she stood up, accounting for the growing bump across her belly, "No, G Man, just leaving"

She was met at the door by her ever doting husband who gave her a quick peck as they crossed paths over the threshold, "So, I got time of death." Jack announced.

That got Booth's attention, "Shoot"

"February tenth 1987" Jack said, barely holding back the usual _King of the Lab _tag.

Brennan's eyebrows raised slightly, "That's... Very specific Dr Hodgins. I'm impressed."

Booth jotted the date in his notebook, "So, what was there – a 23 year old bug in her teeth or, what?"

"I thought that's why Angie came in - to tell you." he shrugged, "Meh, pregnancy brains! There was a letter buried with her. It needs restoration but the date was clearly visible and the insect and soil samples support that time – I found it inside the doll that buried alongside her and brought into evidence."

"Great work, Hodgins. Come on Bones, let's go."

Different from the last three months, Booth's hand took its rightful, natural place at the small of her back as he grabbed her bag for her on the way passed the desk and guided her out of her office.

Booth only hoped that through the heat of that one spot where their bodies were joined, Temperance Brennan could feel the comfort he was trying to pass to her.

**Please Review :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A little casework today – a break from all the angst. I am not a geneticist so, please keep that in mind if I have the sciencey stuff all wrong. It going to be maybe 3 or 4 days before I update again: my husband is coming home from work and we have a lot of... renovating to do ;)**

**Maybe if he has visible evidence of my worth in fanfic world (ie: reviews) then he will let me update earlier. Thanks so much for your support with this story! **

**PS: I don't own Bones but I like 'em ;)**

**PPS: Thank you Mali Bear's Buddy for pointing out my error in chapter 5 - the year of death that Hodgins gives to Booth in the last chapter is 19_87_ (It's fixed now) **

"You OK Bones?" He looked over at her before quickly returning his eyes to the road.

"I'm fine." her reply was brisk – perhaps a tone or two higher in pitch than her normal speech and her smile in no way made it to her eyes.

"Oookay... you just... seemed a little upset when I came into your office. You having second thoughts?" his jaw clenched and then relaxed, "I understand if you are, Bones – It _is_ a big deal."

"You have no reason to doubt my loyalty Booth. You know I am not one to recant on my offers. When I make a commitment – I see it through."

_Yup, something was definitely up._ He wondered what was outside her side her window that she found so fascinating – it had held her attention from the moment they had left the Jeffersonian. _What to do, what to do – defer, deflect, distract?_

_Deflect_: "So, I was thinking we go visit Geoff and Jade first – they are on the way. Then we can pay Amelia a visit. Kill two birds with one stone"

"That would be quite improbable, Booth, _unless_," she lifted a problem solving finger in his direction and raised her eyebrows with slight excitement at having solved the enigma, "unless the rock was big enough to crush the _two_ birds simultaneously, and... why are you intending on killing birds? I am becoming quite worried about your wellbeing, Booth." She returned to looking out the window, "Perhaps you should call Sweets – you _have_ had a lot to deal with this last couple of days."

"Bones!" He laughed genuinely and shook his head, "It's a figure of speech – tell me you haven't heard that before!"

"I haven't heard that before, Booth, and even if I had, I fail to see the connection between the stoning of birds and our case."

"Oh, you're a classic!" he slapped the steering wheel in amusement and then turned on the radio – trust Brennan to be able to be able to pull him out of his problems for a chance to laugh... and breathe.

After the formalities of introductions and such, the current owners, Geoff and Jade Hicks sat across from Booth and Brennan in their newly renovated living room.

"What can you tell us about Amelia Gossell?"

The husband spoke first, "The woman who owned this house before us?" he shook his head, "Never met her – we dealt through her real estate agent. Listen, what is with the bones found in our backyard? We cut our vacation short because we were told by our builder that our yard was declared a crime scene! No, one has been able to tell us a thing and, frankly, I'm a little annoyed." He threw his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the backdoor, "That builder charges by the day and it's costing us a fortune"

"Yeah, now, speaking of money, maybe you could give us the heads up on why you paid only $450,000 for a property worth double that?"

Geoff guffawed, brought the foot that was resting on the opposite knee down and sat up straighter in his seat, "you're joking right?"

Brennan drew a quick breath in defence, "No, Booth takes his job very seriously"

Jade stood up and strode to the side table. Pulling out a thin ream of paper, secured with a bulldog clip, she slapped it onto the coffee table before resuming her spot on the sofa.

"Contract of sale for $900,000. Shall I make a copy for you?"

"That would be very helpful, thank you." Brennan answered whilst Booth gathered his thoughts and tentatively reached for the paper. Flicking through, his brows drew up into a frown and he reached over the coffe table to return it to Jade. She removed herself from the room and was back with a copy before another word was uttered.

"Thank you," Booth rolled it up into a tube and slapped it on his open hand a couple of times before continuing, "I think that about does it for now. Here's the card of my assistant, he will be able to answer any questions you may have about the investigation. Thank you for your time."

* * *

"Well that was awkward, not to mention sus!"

"That was a rather large divergence in price, Booth; I would like to get a copy of contract from Amelia while we are here."

"I'm with you there, Bones."

They sat in comfortable silence as they pulled up to Amelia's apartment block. Reaching the top of the stairs, Booth located the correct apartment and knocked intently. The door opened slightly and a set of eyes appeared level with Booth's forehead.

Both partners looked up to meet the dark chocolate orbs.

"Yes? Can I help you?" the small, timid voice paled in great contrast to the tall woman who stood, half hidden by the door.

With practised flair, Booth flicked out his badge, "FBI – I'm Special Agent Booth and this is my partner Dr Temperance Brennan, we are here to ask you a couple of questions regarding the house that you recently sold at Earl James Drive. May we come in?"

"Sure" the door shut temporarily as the lock slid across, "Come in"

Brennan sent Booth a loaded look as she registered the appearance of the woman. They sat down and Brennan began immediately, "You are abnormally tall, Miss Gossell"

It was more of a statement than a question to which Booth responded with a dig in her side.

"Ow, Booth, I was merely..."

"Bones!" he chastised her rudeness.

"I was introducing a statement of fact to back up my conclusion that she has Marfan Syndrome, Booth..." quietly intended for his ears only, _"ding any bells?"_

"It's _ring_ any bells and yes, Bones – I get the picture!"

"Hello?" Amelia waved a hand at the partners in an effort to break up their banter. "Are you here to ask about the house or make fun of me?"

Booth cleared his throat and gave Bones a dirty look, "Sorry Miss Gossell, I would like a copy of your contract of sale, what was the sale price for the property"

"$450,000." She stood and retrieved the document.

"Thank you – we will get this back to you after we make a copy. Who was your agent?"

"Um, I used my boyfriend, well, ex boyfriend, Jake. He is a real estate agent in DC – he agreed to list my property as a favour and didn't charge commission." She was obviously quite a shy young girl, her shoulders stooped to make herself appear shorter than what she was.

"Jake?" He urged.

"Jake Anderson."

"Did Jake work for an agency or for himself?" Booth jotted down her answers as she spoke.

"Himself. His business was called Lifestyle Solutions. I can give you his number if you like but he disconnected it after we broke up." Amelia offered despondently.

"Well _that _couldn't have been good for business." Booth muttered to Brennan.

"Why did you sell Miss Gossell?" Booth shot Brennan a faux glare for slotting herself back into the conversation so soon after his insulting beginning.

"I, ah wanted to pay for the services of a P.I. To look for my mother. I don't have any family that I know of – it was just me and my Dad until he died of a heart attack a couple of years ago. He said that my Mum left when I was a baby and, with Jake's help I was able to get a private investigator so that I could search for her." She added softly, "Those things cost money"

"We'll need his details also, Thanks"

She looked confused or annoyed but agreed all the same, "OK. Though I doubt they will be much use to you – his number is disconnected too."

"Miss Gossell, what is your birthday?"

Booth shot her a querying look; _that was random! _Though, he was quick to catch Brennan's thought when he heard the date.

"8th Feb '87. Why? Listen, can I see your badge again Mr Booth? I find I am not as trusting of strangers as I used to be" She was feeling slightly paranoid.

"Sure, I understand. How did you and Jake meet?" He leant her his badge for a moment before returning it to his pocket.

"On a Marfan website"

"Jake had Marfan Syndrome?"

"No, his sister did."

"His half sister?" Brennan countered.

"No, full sister, though she died last year"

Brennan scoffed, "That's quite impossible."

"Bones!" _Was she seriously trying to offend this woman?_

She held an open hand in Amelia's direction while regarding him, "Booth, Marfan Syndrome is the result of a mutated _dominant_ gene on the 13th chromosome."

"English, Bones!"

"If even one parent has the condition then any and all children borne from the couple will possess Marfan Syndrome. It is genetically impossible for Jake to have had a _full_ sister with the condition if he did not have it himself."

"So, he lied to me?" she was visibly upset by the discovery.

"Yes." Abrupt as always, Brennan was oblivious to the apparent hurt that the answer caused the girl.

"Do you have any photos of Jake, Amelia?" Booth's tone was empathetic and encouraging.

"Um, no, well, only one – he didn't like being in photos but I took one when he was sleeping – he just looked so peaceful." She flicked opened up her phone, "I'll text it to you"

"That would be great," he gave her his card and slapped his thigh before standing, "OK, well that's about all we need for now, you have been very helpful"

"Helpful with what? Are you going to tell me what's going on?"

"Actually, Booth, before we go – I would like to collect a DNA sample to compare with..."

"OK, Bones!" he sent her a silencing look before she started throwing around insensitive sentences like _the victim who is your mother and who was murdered and rotting in your backyard for the last 23 years..._ "Amelia, some remains were found at your old house and, we thing they may be that of your mother. To know conclusively, Dr Brennan here needs to take a simple swab"

Tears spilled over and she sobbed, "She had Marfans too." It wasn't a question.

Brennan nodded as she wordlessly urged the young woman to open her mouth and she took a swab. Suddenly recognising the similarities between her and this woman, Brennan's pulse rate quickened involuntarily and an inexplicable feeling rose in her throat, "I _am _sorry Miss Gossell. We will run a DNA test but I am quite certain the remains are that of your mother, yes. Though it may not provide you with much comfort, we may be able to provide you with some closure and I understand that would be important to you."

Brennan didn't miss the look of affection shining through Booth. Though Brennan did wonder if she was imagining it, the glaze of moisture over his warm eyes reassured her that she was, in fact correct in her observation. Over the last three month she had desperately missed that _look _and the relief she felt from it's sudden return prompted a small smile as she looked nervously down to the ground.

Caught in her grief, Amelia missed the tender moment between the couple. It took a moment for her to compose herself, slumping back onto the sofa, she looked imploringly up at the them, "What's going on here?"

Brennan answered, "We don't have a conclusive cause of death as yet but we will let you know as soon as we discover anything. In the course of our investigation, we have also found a discrepancy in the contract price of your old property – you received substantially less than what the owners paid for it. We will pursue Mr Anderson for questioning in regards to the variance. Were there any places that he frequented?"

She sniffled and her demeanour changed from grieved to angry instantaneously, "Jake assured me that $450,000 was a great result! That bastard! I knew something was up when he disconnected his phone! If I were you – I'd check out the P.I. as well – here is his card." Amelia angrily swiped at what was left of her tears, "Um, Jake was a homebody – that is, when he was here with me. I never went to his place though I almost always heard sirens when I phoned. He said he lived across the road from a fire station... oh, and a krispy kreme shop – he would always bring me doughnuts from there. I can't believe he would do that to me! I thought he was the one, my soul mate, you know?"

Brennan opened her mouth to object the whimsical idea but closed it again when she saw Booth's silent _'don't-even-think-about-it' _look.

"We'll contact you as soon as we know anything, Amelia, take care, OK?"

She looked through them and responded in a lost little voice "Yeah, OK"

**Please review, there is a virtual, invisible but extremely delicious krispy kreme waiting for all who do!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello! Thank you for your lovely reviews, story and favourite story alerts! Sorry for the wait! Hectic week! I have half a kitchen missing! Anyway, I will recap for you:**

_**Booth finds out Hannah is preggers and is aprehensive yet excited at the prospect of becoming a Daddy again, Hannah doesn't want to go through with it, Brennan finds out that it's not Booth's and gives Hannah till 6pm to tell him. Phew! Sounds like Days of our Lives! Anyway, case wise, they just interviewed the previous owner of the crime scene property, Amelia Gossell, and it seems that the remains found were those of her mother due to the shared chromosomal abnormality. B&B discover, while there, that Amelia was swindled out of a large sum of money in the property changeover by her ex boyfriend/ real estate agent, Jake Anderson. OK, on with the story...**_

"I feel oddly sad for her."

"Yeah, well," his hand fell to her back to guide Brennan in front of him out the narrow gate, "she's had a tough time, Bones, and you're human" Booth glanced at her sideways and sensed her pensive mood. He avoided the emotion and diverted the conversation. "You just, you know, do what you said and give her some closure. We can look into the shifty boyfriend and take it from there."

"I do think it's strange that she didn't know enough about her condition to know that Jake was lying about his sister though." She added as they slipped into the vehicle.

He flashed her a charm smile and turned over the engine. "That's 'cause you're a genius, Bones. Not everyone knows themselves as well as you do." She was sure he was being humorous but the comment pushed her into rumination nonetheless. Brennan felt the absolute opposite of how Booth had described her – it was her lack of knowledge of herself and the resulting flight response that had put them in this uncomfortable mess in the first place.

Had she known how to identify and name the cognitive reactions she had to Booth and his friendship/partnership/whatever-the-hell-it-was-ship, she would have correctly concluded herself to be completely and utterly in love with the man. Of course, Brennan knew that she _loved_ him – they had said as much to each other after his operation, but, Booth was asking for so much more than that. The quixotic, romanticised view that he had of 'being in love' confused her – belittling what she felt towards him.

She looked to Booth whenever there was a question of heart. In his explanations of being in love – she came to doubt herself. Brennan was a woman of science, she reduced everything down to an atomic level but _this_ – this _heart_ issue could not be deduced conclusively with scientific reasoning and it scared her – all the way to the Maluku islands.

"That is an incorrect assumption based on unsubstantiated evidence" It was mumbled, to whatever it was that held her attention out the window, startling Booth from his own reverie.

"Hmph? What?" She reflexively turned her head to look at him, "Bones, you're always reminding me that you're a genius."

She returned her gaze to her window, "I am."

"Right," he drew the word out to express his doubt, "listen, maybe we should stop ignoring the elephant in the room and just talk about it, Bones, it's obviously on your mind"

"Booth, I'm sorry but I didn't understand the metaphor the first time you used it and I assume you are referring to a Masterdon. While they have similar features to an elephant – they are from a different genus altogether."

"Bones! Come on! This is big stuff we are talking here – I need to know we are on the same page. I can see you are serious about adopting this baby and you're the most sincere person I know but, I can also sense apprehension. Can you just... be honest with me Temperance, what are you thinking?"

She brought her eyes to his, "Booth, you need to talk to Hannah. Then we can talk afterwards"

His jaw clenched and relaxed, "She's not answering"

"She will, Booth." Brennan glanced at her watch, "In fact, drop me back at the lab and then go home, I told her to stop avoiding you and talk."

He humphed, smiled slightly and shook his head in wonderment, "Of course you did!"

Silence won them over for a good portion of the ride back to the Jeffersonian. When they arrived, Booth walked her in for a quick update on the case. Brennan submitted the sample of Amelia's DNA for testing and they entered her office just as Angela sauntered in.

"Hey, you two. I was able to restore the letter. Quite a tragedy. I'll leave you with it." She handed a copy of the restored letter and made her exit – discretely recognising that they would appreciate the time to themselves.

"Thanks Angela" Brennan began to read it out loud:

_My Dearest Rosie,_

_Please forgive me Rosie girl. I respected your wishes – I know that you didn't want our little girl to be poked and prodded at – to be a science experiment: as you were. I know that you didn't want to have her at the hospital for that reason but, as your husband – I should have taken you anyway to get you proper care. _

_I am so heartbroken that I failed you! I don't know what happened, I can only assume that your precious heart couldn't take the stress of childbirth and I am so sorry that I couldn't bring you back. I tried – I, God, Rosie – it was awful! I think I made it worse. Please forgive me!_

_It's been two days now – I really don't know what to do. I am laying you to rest under your treasured roses with Mollie doll. I can't make it official, Rosie – they will take our baby girl off us. No one will treat her with the love that she needs – I am all she has now and I can't give her up. _

_She's beautiful, my girl, even at two days – she looks like you! She has your beautiful brown eyes already! I promise to love her and raise her as you would have wanted to yourself. I named her Amelia, Amelia Rose – it means labour. She was a labour of love. Thank you, my love. She won't know how you left us – I am not sure what I will tell her yet but I will not have her believe it was her fault. Hers was a labour of love, Rosie – a true labour of love!_

_Please forgive me Rosie. I love you so much and I miss you so much it hurts. I knew from the moment I saw you – standing a foot clear above all the others that you were the one. You will always be my one and only Rosie girl – through life, through death, through whatever the hell this world throws at us. Please sleep well until I hold you in my arms again._

_Your Husband,_

_Bobby._

Brennan found it difficult to get through the last leg of the letter and kept her head bowed so that she could let the tears dry without him noticing.

Booth was expecting a comment about the whimsy of his words or, at the very least, a dig at Robert's faith in seeing his wife again despite her current state. But, he did not expect tears. _What was happening to his ever rational partner! _

Knowing that she didn't need him to reinforce her "weakness" by acknowledging it, he waited respectfully for her to compose herself – fighting back the compulsion to screw respect and hug her. _That compulsion seems to be happening a lot lately_ – he mused.

"This is no longer a murder investigation, Booth," she sniffed, keeping her head bowed, "he tried to save her – obviously fracturing her ribs in the process of CPR." Needing an out from his gaze, she retreated to the couch, "The stress of labour may have caused an aortic dissection – it's an inherent risk of natural delivery for women with Marfan Syndrome."

Booth finished her proposed scenario, "He panicked, knowing what his wife had been through – being so different to her peers. He didn't want his kid going through the same bullying. He never registered her death – assuming that they would deem him unfit as a single parent." He sighed and slumped down next to her. "I'll organise to transfer the case to the fraud department – we will at least get someone onto Jake and we can now give Amelia some closure."

"You had better go Booth – it's getting late. Perhaps you can take the paperwork with you and drop it off on the way – get them started straight away."

"Ok." He stood and gathered the paperwork, with hesitation and little understanding of why he was asking, he added, "What are you doing tonight?"

She smiled at his thought, "I am just going to finish up here and go home. I don't have anything planned... I..." she looked at her hands sitting in her lap and then raised her eyes to look at him, "...my door is always ajar, Booth... metaphorically, of course... I mean to say – for that talk." Brennan stood, "I'd... better get to work. Good luck with Hannah. You're a good man, Booth, you deserve to be happy... just... remember that." She smiled and left him, speechless in her office.

With that random, tender comment he smiled, shook his head at the ironic, perceived impossibility of her statement and walked out as his phone beeped.

_

* * *

_

_Seeley, we need to talk, Hannah_

* * *

**OK, so the case is, most definitely **_**not**_** over – just so you know. Please review! Thank you!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello all! Thank you again for your kind words! **

**So, I am not really confident about this chapter - I hope it's to your liking. It sort of wrote itself - I will explain a few things at the end and I can post the next chapter within a couple of hours if you're nice (charm smile) **

**Previously on 'The Rose in the Garden'**

**Brennan stood, "I'd... better get to work. You have a good night, Booth. You're a good man, you deserve to be happy... just... remember that."**

**With that random, tender comment he smiled, shook his head at the ironic, perceived impossibility of her statement and walked out as his phone beeped.**

**_Seeley, we need to talk, Hannah_**

After swinging by to drop the case off to Tibbit in Fraud Investigations, Booth made it to his parking space a little after five. It was an early knock-off but it _was_ Friday and he needed to get this issue resolved for the sake of his sanity.

He had been picking up serious stress vibes from Bones all day and it was beginning to worry him – she had obviously spoken to Hannah. It frustrated him that he couldn't get a read on Bones – it seemed he had been so preoccupied the last three months that he hadn't been around her enough to be as in-tune with her moods as he used to be.

Truth be told, it was more than just preoccupation, he had been _trying_ to dispel the whole B&B silent communication thing, the knowing looks and the stronger than 'just partners' bond that him and Bones shared.

Hell, truth be _really_ told – he was hurt. Well, in 'man' vernacular – damn mad!

He thought that he meant more to Brennan than seven months of no contact! After six years working together, after the late nights and shared traditions of their partnership, after the amazing, mind-blowing goodbye kiss_. _

He thought that they had finally, after years of dancing around each other, made some headway – or at least admitted to a deep attraction.

Wait, what? Oh, the kiss, yeah - _The_ kiss...

* * *

10 Months Earlier...

* * *

With a glass of wine in hand, Brennan edited the final chapter that she was to write before she had to step onto the plane for Maluku in 48 hours. Or at least she had read the _first_ sentence mindlessly for the _fifth_ time.

She huffed, startling a strand of hair away from her face. Cursing her lack of concentration, Brennan took a _skull_ of her wine. She tweaked a half smile at her witty thought of the pun and wondered if it would have made Booth laugh.

With _that_ thought, she refilled her glass and took another great gulp complete with a sigh and piteous eye-roll and replaced the bottle onto the coffee table.

The leggy red was doing nothing to calm the anxious feeling that was gnawing at her thoughts - the overwhelming desperation to get out of this situation before it detonated and destroyed everything that they had built together, the un-nameable feeling that threatened to explode every damn time he was around.

It couldn't be healthy whatever it was – it was indecipherable, impossible to read no matter how the equation was laid out. Temperance Brennan was officially _stumped_ and she was going to deaden her senses as best she could before she could retreat and nut out this enigma.

She had successfully exhausted the fight method and had now decided upon flight. That was the plan anyway.

Brennan knew that it could only be Booth at the door at this hour. Her heart leapt with excitement only to be chastised in a quiet, strained whisper. _This_ physical reaction was exactly why she _had_ to take herself out of the situation – temporarily void the stimulus so that conclusions could be made without the physical distraction of attraction.

With another generous roll of her eyes, Brennan heaved herself begrudgingly off the sofa, slid the lock across and let him pass through into her apartment. She didn't trust her voice just yet.

He entered with amused hesitation as he took in the sight of her from her feet up – furry pink slippers, _cute_, blue gym pants, _hot_, a white single top... a _thin_ white singlet top... a tight... thin... _taut_ white singlet top.

_OK, eyes, Booth, look at her eyes_

He managed a panicked coughed and shoved his hands into the shrinking space of his jeans pockets, "Heya Bones, how ya doin?"

She lifted up her glass ceremoniously, "Well on my way to intoxication – care to join me?" Damn her slack mouth for encouraging him to stay – inebriation had attacked her safeguard already.

"Sure, I got one more night before a year of sobriety" he looked up at her – charm smile firmly in place, enjoying his partner's rare and rather cute display of tipsiness.

Brennan pulled a glass from the kitchen for her late night guest, plonked herself down on the sofa and emptied the bottle into his glass as he sat down beside her. "So..." she handed it to him – the tips of his fingers electrically brushing hers at the changeover.

"So... I ahh brought you something."

"Booth..." she looked at him with that imploring face – the one that just grabbed at his heartstrings and gave an almighty tug. This whole separation thing was going to be hard enough as it was.

"Bones, I wasn't going to but... you gotta indulge me ok? You owe me that."

"I'm not sure that I know what you mean. Though I am slightly inebriated, I think, or I could just be..." Brennan awarded him with a drawn out, mewling yawn... "tired." she nodded.

He smiled with deep affection, "I know that you don't believe in this sort of thing but, please, for me, can you wear this while you're away? I know that you can look after yourself and all, it still just makes me nervous that I won't see you... when I need to." He lifted his hand between them – dangling from it was his patron saint medallion.

"Call me irrational or _Alpha Male_ or whatever but...if anything happened..."

"Booth..." That face returned with double strength.

"No, Bones, I gotta say it..." his hands brought the chain up to her neck, guiding her hair gently out the way he leaned closer to her and deftly clasped it around the back of her neck. His touch lit a path that radiated through her resolve like fire through a cane field.

"_I_ need to know that I am doing _everything_ I can to keep you safe"

She nodded, the blue of her eyes almost swallowed by the growing black centres that were locked onto his.

With a flush of emotion, her eyes filled with desperate tears - desperate for him, yet desperate for control, desperate for understanding of this damn gut wrenching desperation.

As his thumb made contact with her cheek, it gently disturbed the balance and a tear toppled over her lashes onto his waiting hand. Brennan's eyes slipped shut – sending rivers of tears over the edge. She leaned into his palm and smiled ever so faintly in defeat, stifling a sob.

Feeling his warm breath on her face, she tipped forward and bumped his nose with hers in a friendly yet exasperated reprimand before her lips fell open and, with a breathy, "Booth..." slipped over his in desperate appeal.

**...Detonation...**

Never had Booth been kissed so passionately. It didn't even register as being physical attraction – though there was a lot of _that_. It was pure and needy – a frantic necessity to discover the depths of what they had before they had to leave it behind. The strong undercurrent that had been drawing him helplessly to her for the last six years was manifested in _this – this _explotion of feelings.

Her sobs were intermingled with throaty declarations of pleasure. the taste of salt and wine on her lips pulled him back from the brink of oblivion and he knew it couldn't go further. With a loud, wet pop, his lips separated from hers and he held their foreheads together while he calmed his breathing.

"Bones, I can't... you've been drinking and... you're upset..."

She looked up to her ceiling and sighed exhaustedly, "Booth, this is why..." She stood and growled at herself, "This is why I have to go! To get..." she sniffed and gestured in frustration, "_perspective_! I don't know _what_ I am thinking these days and it scares me, Booth! Please, just, don't make it harder ok? I can't give you what you need!"

His head dropped back onto the top of the sofa as he watched her through dark eyes. "Ok"

He sat up with an exasperated sigh and nodded – holding his palms up to the sky in surrender, "Ok, Bones. Go find perspective. Just do me a favour and let me know when you do, hey?"

* * *

Yup, He had been _mega_ angry.

Though six months of absolutely no contact was what eventually pushed him over the edge of reason.

And at the bottom of that precipice was Hannah - distractingly hot, sweet, lovable, easy Hannah.

Just to add an extra big, dry log to his raging fire of guilt, she was now seriously _pregnant_ Hannah.

Silencing his phone, he stepped through his front door, took a deep breath and called, "Hannah?"

**SPOILERS up to S6E3**

**Ok, so things just aren't adding up for me with this whole debarcle. Firstly, the airport scene - end of season 5, Brennan appeared to wearing his pendant. Their goodbye was too intense for them to not have shared at least a _kiss _beforehand. It's as if they couldn't even trust themselves to hug the other. Now, season six - first episode - Booth's nose has obviously been put out of joint by Brennan not keeping in contact and he seemed genuinely angry and spiteful with her when he told her about Hannah. Eps 2 & 3 he is not showing any consideration to her feelings whatsoever and is seemingly rubbing her nose in it. I just can't help thinking there's more to it than what they have shown us so far. Brennan is breaking my heart! **

***itsjustashowitsjustashow!***

**Oh, and please review :) Thank you!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Previously:**

**Yup, He had been _mega_ angry.**

**Though the non-contact was what literally pushed him over the edge of reason. And at the bottom of that precipice was Hannah - distractingly hot, sweet, lovable, easy Hannah.**

**Just to add an extra big, dry log to his raging fire of guilt, she was now seriously _pregnant_ Hannah.**

**Silencing his phone, he stepped through his front door, took a deep breath and called, "Hannah?"**

"Seeley, I'm in the kitchen," She met him half way – drying her hands on a tea-towel, "hey." Her voice was tender yet laced with sadness.

He gave her arm an affectionate rub, "Hey, how are you feeling?"

"I'm ok... listen, we need to talk," she shrunk from his touch, disappeared back in to the kitchen and returned with scotch on the rocks for him. _Oh, this had to be bad!_

He noticed that she was without a drink and it reassured him a little though, he slumped himself down on the sofa nonetheless and took a burning shot of the amber liquid - preparing himself for the worse.

She sat down on the single seater chair, facing him, "I had a scan this morning – the doctor all but insisted on it."

At this, he sat up a bit, "Yeah? Is everything ok?" _You had a scan without me?_ The feelings of being excluded from Rebecca's pregnancy returned as a clench to his gut and it took all of his resolve to try and hide it from Hannah.

She noticed him tense, though did not know him enough to recognise it was due to déjàvu. They had not really spoken of the effect it had on him that he wasn't apart of Rebecca's pregnancy. Their previous conversations had always leaned towards the enjoyable _cause _of pregnancy – omitting the more serious effects of it. In fact, it had dawned on him that none of the 'Hannah initiated' conversations had included Parker and it saddened him somewhat.

"No, I mean, yes, the pregnancy is going well."

"Then..."

"Well, I am a bit farther along than I calculated. What I thought to be a period was actually _not_ and I am now just into the second trimester."

He sat back into the sofa staring ahead blankly – the air leaving his lungs at impact, "Woah," suddenly realising what she was saying, he continued, slightly panicked and a little uncomfortable with the 'period talk', "So... if you thought you had your, you know, period, whatever, there was _bleeding_. Is it ok now? Was it alright?"

He was clearly distressed discussing the more unbecoming issues of women's business and, if she weren't so nervous about his reaction to the impending news, she would have made fun of it.

"It's all fine, Seeley. The baby is fine, I'm fine. It was good, you know, to see that it's real. It made it more do-able." Hannah smiled through brimming eyes.

"So, you're going to go through with it?" Images of Hannah holding their child jumped into his consciousness, promptly followed by thoughts of _Bones_ holding his baby. The two rivalling vignettes scrambled for dominance in his mind - the scenarios borne from Bones' proposition had given him hope in the situation that seemed hopeless.

"I am going to adopt it out."

"Oh," _they must have talked about it,_ "so Bones told you about her proposition?"

Hannah let out a cynical laugh, "Yeah, well, that depends on which proposition you're referring to."

"Well, her, you know, adopting the baby."

"_What!_ Temperance?" Disgust may _not_ have been too strong a word to describe Hannah's reaction to what Booth was suggesting as she sprung up from her seat.

"Ok, so maybe you guys didn't talk about that bit."

"My goodness, Seeley! It's just downright scary what that woman would do to get into your pants!" Hannah spat, gesturing wildly and pacing the room, "She is so obviously infatuated with you – it makes me sick! And _you!_ With your smile and your eyes and your, '_Bones this and Bones that_!' - _You_ encourage it!"

He stood abruptly ending her tirade, "Ok, _enough_, Hannah! You _know_ what Bones and I are to _each_ _other_ and it's not like that!'

"I wish I could believe that Seeley. She's so blatant it's ridiculous!" She folded her hands in front of her chest and slumped back into the chair.

"Both of you today are just..." he huffed in exaggeration, and then addressed her directly and seriously, "Tell me what is going on here, Hannah! What has the two of you so damn riled up!"

She sighed and the fight drained from her eyes, _now or never_, "It's not yours Seeley, the baby isn't yours."

Booth sat down again, "What?" looking up at her with questioning eyes he continued, "Exactly how far along are you?"

"About 14 weeks."

Realisation dawned and his demeanour darkened, "Who?"

"Bates. It was once only, a mistake and for what it's worth, I'm sorry." He voice was quiet, the silence that followed was deafening.

Finally Booth spoke, "Yeah, well... makes sense now, I guess. Coming here – you weren't running _to_ me, you were running from whatever it was between you two." He honestly didn't know how he felt. Numb perhaps. Rather relieved but it wasn't something he wanted to admit even to himself at this point in time so he pushed that thought out of mind.

"I don't really know how I feel, Hannah." he paused, elbows resting on his knees, shaking his head, "I don't think _we_ can pull through this but..." He examined the palms of his hands. "I appreciate the fact that you've decided to go through with the pregnancy and I said I'd support you with that decision. You can stay here until you work out what you want to do. I can..."

"No," she drew the word out in exhaustion and relief that he didn't react as wildly as she had imagined he would. "No, Seeley, thank you. I've ah, I've taken my stuff to Michelle's from work – we can be _pregnant _and _single _together." She laughed despite the tears, nodding as she continued, "I'm going to stay there for a while till I sort out my _stuff_."

"Mmmh, ok." Booth nodded – still looking at his hands. "I ahh, I'll drop you over there."

"Thanks, that'd be great" Hannah paused, then smiled, "Maybe let Temperance know that we've talked about everything so that she can call off the hit she's got on me."

Booth laughed, he could only imagine the words exchanged between the women, "Can do. Come on."

The drive was pretty much silent as the weight of their discussion loomed over them. He hugged her goodbye and reassured her that he would help out if she needed it. She walked in, without looking back, without any intention of taking him up on his offer of help.

He drove around for an hour or so trying to absorb all that had happened in the last 48 hours, his silent tears taking precedence over the constant vibrating of his phone. Finally, when the fuel light began to flash, he pulled over, cut the engine and answered gruffly.

"Booth"

"Booth, are you ok?"

"Yeah Bones, what's up?"

"I got a call from Tibbit, he's handing the case back to us."

"but it's no longer a homicide, Bones. How'd he get your number?"

"He's FBI Booth – I'd imagine the same way you get contact information. They found Jake Anderson"

"He dead?"

"Yes, they found his remains in his apartment. Though, according to Tibbit he's still rather fleshy so, I called Dr Saroyan and advised her that we would meet her there." Her tone changed, "Booth, I know that this is most likely not the best time for you. Are you ok to do this?"

"Yeah, Bones," He brushed off her concern. He'd already had too deep a conversation for one night, "where are you, I'll pick you up."

**Thanks for reading! Drop me a line!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Wow! The response to the last two chapters was really encouraging! Thank you! For those of you who need reassurance - yes, Hannah is gone 4eva :)**

**Previously: Hannah told Booth that the baby wasn't his, he breaks it off but still offers her support as she has decided to continue with the pregnancy and adopt the little bubs out (whether she doesn't keep it herself in the end - we don't know) she moves out. The body of the con man Jake Anderson is found in his apartment and B&B and Cam are called in to investigate.**

Camille Saroyan bent at the hip over the body lying in the centre of the living room, bending her knees only enough to examine without getting decaying human stench on her. She could never understand why Brennan would get up so close to a dead body. _"Meh"_ She shrugged; at least she couldn't fault the passion of the Anthropologist.

Booth's sudden demand interrupted her musings, "Cam, what have you got for us?"

Brennan began silently scouting out the victim's apartment while Cam looked up at Booth and gave a tight smile, "Very recent, hardly a fly on the guy. Maybe a couple of hours – three tops. Tibbit must have almost bumped into our killer on the way in to question this poor sucker."

"Cause of death?"

She turned Jake's head slightly and touched her gloved finger to the blood that was camouflaged in his dark hair and pooling beneath his head on the vinyl floor "Appears to be blunt force trauma."

Brennan completed her tour, returned to the living room and crouched down nice and comfy next to the deceased. Cam actually wondered what required Brennan to be here seeing as there was not a bone in sight and, more intriguingly, why she wasn't protesting her attendance. In the end, Cam simply put it down to one of those many things that she would never understand about Temperance Brennan and was happy for the extra set of forensically trained eyes.

Turning her attention to Booth, Cam had recognised the tension that he was exhibiting. His posture was closed, his tone was less than friendly, and Brennan appeared to be compensating for it with her quiet reserve. In fact, the last couple of days, there seemed to be something weighing heavily on the partners, though, that didn't surprise her in the least – their 'partnership' was a whole other level of intimacy that she had never come close to with Seeley. Albeit dampened by the thoughtless addition of Hannah.

It seemed, whatever their problem was, the private communication that they shared before Brennan panicked and fled to a deserted island, had slowly begun to return and she trusted that they world work it out.

In an effort to lighten the mood, she slipped in a polite, "How's Hannah, Seeley?"

Booth's hand fisted around his pen and his mouth took on a thin line just as Brennan raised her eyebrows in a clear save, "Ahh, Dr Saroyan..." with a discreetness that Cam hadn't credit Brennan for possessing, the anthropologist gave a warning look at their level and continued, "...it appears that the victim is holding onto...hair - brown. It may have been pulled in an altercation" She bagged it and handed it to her boss.

"I recommend, at some point, you collect nail samples also to determine any particulate evidence leading to the murderer."

Standing up, she addressed her partner, "Booth, there's no indication of forced entry. By your standards, that would suggest Mr Anderson knew his killer?"

"Yeah Bones" he jotted in his little book. With a small but appreciative smile, he raised just his eyes to meet hers and in a softer tone, he added, "Thanks"

_And there's that look again. _Cam smiled, _they were back!_

_

* * *

_

"Oh hohoho! I almost forgot!" as they were leaving the scene, Booth perked up when he spotted _the_ shop of all comfort food shops.

"I am astounded that, at 11:30 in the evening there is a doughnut shop still trading!"

He looked at her in faux shock, "They're not just doughnuts, Bones!" Breaking into a grin that made his partner relax for the first time that night, he nodded, "Krispy Kreme, Bones! Tell me you've experienced Krispy Kreme!"

"I _could_ tell you that but, I don't enjoy lying to you, Booth"

"Ohh, Bones, Bones, Bones, come on!" he linked arms with her and ushered her in, "They even have healthy ones especially for you - with fruit and everything!"

"Booth, they are drenched in saturated fats, the addition of fruit as a garnish does not automatically place it within the category of wholesome food."

He looked at her with admiring eyes and offered a friendly chuckle as his hand slipped from her arm and resumed its warm contact at the welcoming spot on her back. The old Bones and Booth chemistry held more relief for his exhausted mind than an entire night's worth of dreamless sleep.

"Butterscotch for me," Brennan informed the teenage boy behind the counter. Booth pointed to indicate his selection as she continued with her order, "And an apple custard pie in a take away bag thank you"

"I thought you didn't like cooked apple, Bones. You_ evolving_ on me?"

"Oh..." she smiled somewhat bashfully, shifting her eyes from his to the menu board in an obvious effort to hide the pink glow of her cheeks. "...no, Booth. I recall once, Parker said that he liked apple custard pie. I figured – it's your day with him tomorrow." She shrugged, returned her eyes to his and then followed through – employing a little more _squint _in her manner, "I don't support the immoderate consumption of saturated fats, especially with children but I thought... as a special treat – you could allow it."

She paid as the attendant handed over her box and Booth stood, watching her - speechless in wonderment.

It suddenly dawned on him that, yes, it _had_ been relief that he'd felt when Hannah confessed.

He was relieved because it gave him an out from this whole, screwed up tragic mess that he had brainlessly put himself into.

It had given him relief because, no matter how perfect Hannah was for him – it still felt as if he was cheating on Temperance.

He had felt relieved because, despite his being a complete and utter jerk to her - Bones was supportive to the point of denying _her_ desire to carry a child to save the life of _his_.

No matter what had happened with them in the past – the anger, the confusion, the kisses shared at the wrong times, the miscommunications;

Temperance Brennan was _unequivocally_ in love with Seeley Booth.

Whether they admitted to it or not, whether caveat 'atta girls' were clipped onto heartfelt declarations or not, whether the definition of love was truly understood by either party or not. The truth was the truth and whether he had to endure another seven years waiting for her to catch up with it – _that_ scenario was better than burying his head in the quick-sand of just another 'fill in relationship'.

Booth was pulled out of his grand moment of understanding by the loud smacks of palms on the glass shop window and the drunken revelry of a group of teenage boys. They made it through the door, sprouting obscenities and whistling lustily at Brennan before Booth had his badge in their faces threatening a less-than-comfortable bed for the night should they decide to continue. As quick as they arrived, they left and the annoyed shop attendant grumbled in frustration.

"I totally hate the Friday nite shift."

"Guess you get that a lot hey?" Booth was rather amused. He and Brennan took a seat with their fat soaked treats.

"Oh, you bet!" the kid was shaking his head animatedly; "It started early tonight, man. Had a guy take a _leak _on the wall out the front at the start of my shift!" He waved an arm out the door. "Dude, it reeks out there, man!"

The pair laughed.

"Then this crazy chick came in – like totally freaking out – she had blood all down her shirt. I mean, who thinks, amidst a freaking meltdown, "Oh, I feel like a doughnut!"" His eyes bulged comically and he put his hands up as if surrendering, "Like – totally tripped out!"

Booth's ears pricked at the mention of blood, "This crazy woman, what did she look like?"

"Oh, she was something else man! Freaking taller than I've ever seen a woman! I like my woman tall – but she was just a regular basketball pro, you know what I mean?" he scrunched his nose up, "Talk about intimidating – I just gave her her doughnuts and thanked God when she bailed, man!" He laughed and shook his head as he pushed a mop and bucket out to the back room.

Brennan brushed her hand over Booth's bicep in order to get his attention, "I believe, by _regular basketball pro_, he was making reference to the fact that..."

"Got it Bones." He looked in the direction of the backroom then added in an enthusiastic whisper, "Who else do we know who is as tall as a basketball player?" Brennan half smiled in realisation and he raised an eyebrow in response, "Too many coincidences, Bones."

She returned his enthusiasm, "Ahh, but there are no coincidences in a murder investigation, Booth!"

"I've taught you well, haven't I?"

Brennan held a finger up in protest, "Yes, but one must possess the cognizant ability to learn!" she took a bite of her doughnut and smiled – her cheeks bulging out as she savoured her near – midnight snack. "Mmm! This is good!" She nodded in approval, mumbling through a mouthful of deliciousness, "Mmm!"

**Ok, so I know that seemed rather jovial but, the thought of Amelia doing what she seemed to have done will hit Brennan. Perhaps the both of them are just so emotionally exhausted by everything - they are just taking a 'time out' from all things emotional and simply enjoying the luxury of familiar company. Anyway, I hope you are all well! I should have this baby wrapped up with a couple more chapters! Let me know what you think!**


	11. Chapter 11

**OK, guys - this is the second last chapter! I am so excited by your really encouraging reviews, to the anonymous reviews and especially to the lovely people who support me with opinions and suggestions with each chapter - it's just great! I hope you enjoy this! My husband comes home tomorrow for about 4 days and I always tend to get too wrapped up with him to write (In a good way) so, once again, please review, maybe I will feel encouraged enough to put a capper on it before he gets here! Thanks again, please enjoy!**

**Previously: It seems that Amelia had killed Jake, B&B bonding over Krispy Kremes (To by honest, although I dream about one day getting the chance - I have never had the opportunity to try them).**

Booth got an early start in the morning before Parker's arrival to bring Amelia in. She had gone willingly and, with the DNA evidence Brennan had collected in their first interview linking her to the hair in the victim's hand – a confession was pulled out without too much prodding.

"It wasn't about the money." She volunteered, long ago relenting to the cascade of tears spilling down her cheeks.

"I know" Brennan replied softly.

"I just..." She sniffed and Brennan offered her a tissue, missing the look of tenderness in Booth's eyes as he watched his partner, "my Mum left when I was a baby. Dad always avoided the topic altogether - tried to tell me it was because of him but, I could see otherwise in his eyes." Suddenly poignant she implored Brennan, "He loved her... _so_, _so_ much and looked at me with these, these _eyes_ that told me everything – he was upset with me even though I know he loved me... Then _he_ left me. I never had anyone else.

" Then Jake." She shook her head, wincing – as if trying to get the gut wrenching thing she'd done to him out of her thoughts, "I went there to _talk_ you know? Just to ask him why he would do such an awful, _awful_ thing to me when - he knew all of that!

"I worked out after you left that there couldn't be too many doughnut shops next to ambulance stations in DC so I googled it." She scratched her head restlessly, "He called me a..." a sob gripped her breathing and she broke down, words spilling in a blubbery jumble, "A...a _freak_! Gullible... needy... freak of a woman. I don't know what came over me – I just... he was obviously right! I freaked out!"

Her body wracked with a guilty, grief stricken, out-pour of tears. Brennan's hand rested on her arm until the intensity of her cries subsided, "Amelia, we found a letter... buried beside your Mother's remains." Amelia looked up and Brennan's throat swelled when she saw the look of desperation on the woman's face, "It was from your Father to your Mother."

"He didn't kill her! I know he didn't, he couldn't have!"

Brennan jumped in quickly to calm her, "No, no he didn't – he tried to save her" Amelia nodded, fresh tears forming.

Brennan slid the letter across to her and stood. Booth thought it best to give Amelia's some alone time to read the letter and ushered his partner out of the room – assuring the younger woman that they would be back.

* * *

"It's an unpleasant feeling being alone." it surprised her that she had said it out loud; it was intended as a silent thought.

"You're never alone Bones" Booth's lips were straight and eyes bored into the side of her face as she watched Amelia's reactions through the observation window.

She pulled out of her trance and brought her glassy eyes to his, "I hadn't meant for that to be spoken audibly."

He repeated his reassurance but with more conviction, almost a growl, "You're never alone, Temperance."

She shook her head, "Booth, despite your unwavering deliverance of that statement – you... _and others_, have perhaps been unintentionally distracted somewhat by your own lives to notice that your assertion is, in fact, incorrect. While I understand and have compensated for it, things are different – with you, Ange, Dr Saroyan, even my Dad.

"Nonetheless, it is the natural transiency of change and, in no way do I intend to burden you with the guilt of the consequences it has resulted in. I just..." she turned again and discretely swiped at her rebelliously leaking eyes, "I just couldn't allow you to make that allegation without correcting its inaccuracy. That's all."

His heart dropped. What had he done? He had been so fuelled by his feelings of hurt that he had neglected the one thing that mattered. He wasn't about to make the same mistake again. He knew how she felt – even if she didn't realise it herself.

If anything, this whole Hannah experience had reinforced the affect of true love. Temperance had displayed love in its truest form and, only in that moment had she verbally expressed her discomfort at the fact that he had betrayed her.

What a moron! Fighting his natural inclination to wallow in self pity and keep himself from her with the excuse that he wasn't good enough, he concluded that he would allow himself to love her... properly. In the way that she loved him. Booth knew it would take time – for both of them, but after so many years of not _getting_ it – it would be a walk in the park to surrender to his true feelings for the woman and trust that she reciprocated his love wholeheartedly even if she wouldn't admit to it.

He thought back on all the times he preached to Temperance about the topic of love – as if he was some sort of experienced novice on the subject. He had simply been placing the doctor in the same category as everyone else did – unfeeling and oblivious. His conscience gripped his gut as he realised the superficiality of his actions – the patronising attitude that he had developed toward her.

Temperance wasn't oblivious and she, most certainly was not unfeeling. She just felt things to such a huge degree that she didn't know quite how to vocalise it sometimes. But as the old saying goes, it's not the words but the actions that speak the loudest and it was his time to yell.

"Come over tonight"

She looked at him questioningly, "But you have Parker."

He smiled, "I know, he misses you." He ran his thumb lightly down her face – over the path of a dried tear, "I've really screwed things up Temperance, I know that and – I can't tell you how sorry I am, but my sole intention is to fix this"

Involuntarily, Brennan's eyes closed and she shivered under his warm touch, but she didn't back down, "There are some things that require more than effort and persistence to repair, Booth."

"I know, Bones." He stepped bach a smidge and looked at her feet 'cause they were more interesting than his own. Shoving his hands in his pockets to curb their incessant desire to touch her magnetic skin, he reasoned, "Sometimes it takes time... necessity and..." he stepped a fraction closer bending his neck to look her directly in the eyes, "...belief"

She broke their eye contact, faced the window and crossed her arms protectively over her chest, "I think that you would call that faith, Booth."

"What do you call it, Bones?"

In barely a whisper, she looked pensively out the window – desperate to get out of the oppressive atmosphere of longing, "Love"

His heart thumped, "Well, then this..." he waved his hand between the two of them, "This will be fixed, Temperance, because we _have _time, it _is_ simply a necessity," he stepped closer so that she could feel his breath on the back of her neck and lowered his volume to speak only inches from her ear, "And I have _faith _that, despite the fact that we've both been stunted by our own insecurities and hurt... we most definitely have _love_."

With the last word, he tentatively rested his hands on her shoulders. As soon as the physical contact was made, she swung around and buried her face in his chest. Her occasional hiccup and the slowly growing patch of moisture on his shirt - the only indicators of the years worth of pent up restraint that rushed out of her - shattering the dam into a million irreparable pieces.

"Shh, it's ok," Booth whispered. His hand forged a soothing circular path over her back, and his chest hammered with what he had to say next, "I love you, Temperance, and I know what I have done is inexcusable and unforgivable at the moment but I know you love me too. You're selfless and loyal and the most undeserved friend I have ever had."

She sobbed, "Shhh, I know it's not going to happen straight away, Bones, but I want to make up for what we've lost – rebuild our friendship, rebuild your trust in me and, hopefully over time, you will accept that we are made for each other" With his chin rested atop her head, he smiled with the last phrase, hoping to get a dig.

His hope was rewarded as her breath snagged in the remnants of her sobs and she mumbled into his chest, "Booth, while your sentiment is admirable, it is, most certainly illogical and incorrect."

He squeezed his arms tight around her and grinned from ear to ear, "Shut up, Bones, you damn well know what I mean!"

As he felt her smile, he released a breath of relief and held her till he was satisfied they would be alright.

**No sloppy hollywood kiss, sorry! Please review and i will endeavour to fulfil your wishes. Though, no smut - sorry to dissapoint those who are into it but I try to keep it at a level that would be suitable for telly and, after all, what's theirs is theirs! Right? Take care!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Well, here it is folks! The last chapter! I am very excited that it's come to a close! Thank you soooo much for coming along for the ride and for your wonderful, wonderful reviews! It's been a great experience and I look forward to reading what you think. Thanks again! See you 'round!**

One and a half months later...

Brennan sat, in the glorious warmth of the morning sun on the stairs at the Reflecting Pool, uncharacteristically nervous. She knew it was merely a release of dopamine, norepinephrine and phenylethylamine coursing through the minute chemical pathways of her body. Recently, though, she had become trusting enough of herself and Booth to curb her fear and allow the emotion to develop.

The fact that Brennan understood the chemical process behind the feelings she experienced, was a logical enough basis for Booth to get her to admit love as a tangible, namable _thing_.

Granted - whilst the chemicals that had aided their initial attraction would fade (as she had always sermonize), with a little research on his part, he discovered evidence of the fact that chemicals designed to deepen their love and strengthen their bond would replace the others. Thus, providing her with a hypothesis; and a rather tempting _challenge_ to prove its validity.

Respecting the necessity for Brennan to heal and process her thoughts, Booth mustered as much restraint as he could and just put it out there simply and factually. Without pushing her or overwhelming her with romantic notions of eternal love, he left it up to Brennan to be the one to initiate a relationship beyond their partnership. Booth had, most certainly learnt from his mistakes and was not about to gamble impulsively on their love again.

He had achieved what Brennan had thought to be the impossible – _convinced_ her, through deductive rational analysis, that _love_ would _not_ be ephemeral with Seeley and Temperance, so long as they both committed 100%.

Brennan shifted on the step. She was craving a coffee but the thought of coffee breath put her off. With that prompt, she placed her colourful bouquet gently beside her and fished through her bag for a stick of gum.

_This_ was to be their moment, no fight or flight, no self denial _and no coffee breath_. Just acceptance, trust and pleasure - a fresh start. One year to the day from when their lives careered off course, almost destroying the very thing that held it all together – the centre.

The last six weeks had slowly returned to normal - as normal as _normal_ could be. Their case load had increased as had their efficiency. Their comfortable dining, takeout and 'end of case drinks' schedule had resumed and Booth and Brennan had all but physically established that their relationship had progressed substantially from the state that it was in immediately 'post Hannah'.

She hoped though, that he hadn't forgotten their pre-arranged rendezvous. Neither had mentioned it – each hoping the other had enough sentiment to remember their parting vow uttered in the tense airport goodbye.

In a feeling that couldn't be explained with scientific rationale; sensing Booth's proximity, she looked over her shoulder and a radiant smile graced her face as he scuffed down the stairs to sit beside her.

Needing the reassurance of her touch in, what he could tell was going to be an emotionally charged discussion; he wrapped her petite form tenderly in a one armed hug and squeezed affectionately.

Endeavouring to hide her blushing cheeks, she rested her head on his chest and her smile brightened with the sound of his rapidly beating heart.

_So Booth, the King of hearts was nervous too!_

"Hey" the warmth from his breath loitered teasingly in her hair.

"Hey. You remembered?" she was trying to hide the wild cardiac staccato from her voice but failed.

"I haven't stopped thinking about it from that moment a year ago, at the airport Bones" he admitted with a chuckle. The deep reverberating timbre of his voice struck her core.

"Whilst I am in no way inexperienced with men, I find myself, distractingly nervous." She raised her eyes to meet his – getting completely lost in their magnetic pull.

He smiled and, in a very rare show of vulnerability, looked down, nodding, "Yeah, me too"

"I hypothesize that it is due to the fact that I have no intention of ever doing this again and it is only natural, given that I am placing so much importance on getting my speech right, that I would feel somewhat apprehensive."

"You could never say the wrong thing, Temperance. I should have corrected you back then when you said you can't change because, the last thing I would ever want you to do is change. The things that come out of your mouth are uniquely you and I am sorry for making you doubt that I don't hang off every word you say."

She half smiled, tilted her head and briefly diverted her eyes to the right as if to try and analyse his comment. Coming up dry, she questioned, "I am not certain you could _hang_ off my words, Booth," normally she would have left it at that, but she wasn't deliberately trying to be obtuse and desperately wanted this conversation to go well, "though, if I am missing a colloquial use of the term then perhaps you could clarify."

He expressed his wonderment with a headshake and a contented smile, "It means I _adore_ you, Bones. Your take on life is refreshing yet it keeps me grounded. You're so," he fingered the lock of hair that had been sitting across her face like an excuse to touch her and delicately swathed her cheek in his palm, "You're so... you're beautiful, Bones."

Noticing the flicker of alarm in her eyes, he toned it down with an attempt at humour, "So, you prepared a speech, huh?"

"No, not literally, though I have a grasp on the general topics I wish to discuss with you."

"Ok, shoot"

She smiled impishly, continuing on with her version of comic relief, "I would. However, given the injury you sustained the last time I discharged a weapon in your presence, I think I will leave the shooting in you expert hands"

He cuddled into her warmly, laughing, "Yeah, well it could have been worse"

"I concur – the deflected bullet could, most certainly have made higher contact"

_Oh, she wasn't clueless, that was a wicked grin if he'd ever seen one!_

"That's a bit below the belt, Bones!"

She gave a throaty laugh, "I'm glad you follow the implication, Booth"

He squeezed in response as their amusement died down, "I'm also glad I didn't. Shoot you in the testicle that is. Though, I am sorry I shot you in the leg... albeit indirectly"

"At least we'll have good stories to tell our kids." He surprised himself with his uncensored comment and expected to see panic in her eyes but she simply raised her eyebrows and pointed at the air,

"Yes, how their Mother's skilful aim spared the possibility that they may have never had the chance to exist."

He breathed a sigh of relief, "Yeah that. Or how their _Dad' _skilfully accurate knife throwing spared their Mom's beautiful face."

She giggled, yes, _giggled_, "If I remember accurately, Booth, and in case you hadn't noticed – I have a very accurate memory; your antics that day did actually hurt my face."

"Aw Bones, spare a guy wouldya! I said I was sorry!" His puppy-eyed expression made her laugh more.

For the fifth time since he'd sat down beside her, Booth eyed the bouquet of colour – individual posies of flowers tied up with little pink ribbons and bound together with an inch wide ribbon of the same colour, "So ahhh... who got you the flowers, Bones?"

"Oh... I bought them."

"They're beautiful, they're... unique, but I thought you liked Daffodils?"

"Daffodils would not have been appropriate for the intended symbolism of this arrangement"

He smiled, "Oh?"

"Well not entirely anyway."

"Why, Bones." He was genuinely curious at what her amazing mind had come up with.

"Because they are said to mean unrequited love..." His smile brightened. "..._symbolically_, daffodils are also said to mean chivalry, sunshine, respect and "the sun shines when I'm with you."

"The _sun_ will always shine – regardless of the presence of another though, you _are_ chivalrous and I have a great deal of respect for you, I feel that the general meaning of the flower did not suit the message I was trying to convey."

"Aw, Bones, you bought me flowers?"

She blushed and took the bouquet from beside her, holding it in her lap; she untied the wide ribbon that was holding the posies together. "My intention was not to insult your heterosexuality, but to romanticise my feelings as I am well aware of your dependence on such sentimentality within a relationship and I want to do my best to support that, Booth. Whilst, at times _unnecessary_, I find that part of you to be quite endearing." The last sentence was spoken with a childlike innocence that made his heart swell with love and pride.

With the intention of hiding his brimming eyes, he leaned over her and pointed to a purple daisy-like flower with a yellow centre, "So,ahh, Daisy?"

She handed him the little spray of purple flowers, "Aster alpines. The Aster flower represents patience and is also indicative of a love of variety. I took this to be fitting as you have been more than patient with me over the duration of our partnership. As much as I possess above average intelligence, my social skills and pop culture understanding can be somewhat lacking. I am conscious of the fact that it would require patience on your part and this is an expression of my appreciation for such."

Before he found his voice she handed him a second posy – bright yellow and cheerful, "Ranuculus" she smiled bashfully and looked him in the eyes, "They say, "I am dazzled by your charms""

Booth rewarded her with his trademark charm smile and looked down at the blooming layers of yellow petals.

He received the weeping purple and yellow sprig of flowers from her, "Bittersweet flower means truth. I vow to tell you the truth and promise to do my best at vocalising my feelings... even if they are merely chemical reactions designed for the survival of the species. I recognise they hold value to you and I politely request that you reciprocate the expression of truth."

Not trusting his voice, Booth nodded, expressing his sincerity through his chocolate eyes. She understood his silent answer and a single, beautiful passionflower was handed to him.

"Passionflower represents my faith in you. Faith that has kept me hopeful despite the dire circumstances I have, at times, found myself in and faith that keeps me optimistic with the thought of our impending romance..." she smiled and averted her gaze to the flowers in her lap, "... not to mention _pleasantly_ aroused."

He laughed and lowered his hand from her shoulders to her waist – giving her a gentle nudge.

Finally, with trepidation, she gave him a handful of delicately hued pink petals, "This, I feel is the most appropriate in representing how I feel. The Azalea is said to mean three things, firstly, it means take care of yourself for me."

She shook her bowed head, "I've always worried about you, Booth, when I went to Maluku I was..." her constricting throat deepened her voice a little and he held her tighter as silent encouragement, "I left DC because the worry I felt for you was overwhelming. Not surprisingly, when reviewed in retrospect, it was worse on the island."

Needing to continue to prevent the topic from dissolving into tears, she went on, "It also means fragile passion. I am a strong woman, Booth but, these feelings I have for you – they metaphorically strip me of strength in a very frightening way. As much as I enjoy this new aspect of our relationship – it carries with it a vulnerability that I may struggle with from time to time."

"Temperance..."

"The _third_ meaning for this flower _is_ Temperance. I have never understood nor agreed with the concept of the giving of oneself to another though, now... I believe it to be the only appropriate gesture of my complete feelings toward you."

After avoiding his eyes so that she could get through what she had to say without crying, she lifted her brimming eyes to his – seeing nothing but complete adoration.

"I love you, Seeley Booth, I am certain of nothing else."

With that, her lips were on his, chastely at first to express her sincerity, with her hand cupping his face gently. Then, slowly working her hands to grip the hair at the back of his neck, she intensified their osculation to a tantric level, raising their heartbeats to dangerous levels.

Plucking his mouth from hers and with heavy breaths, he spoke, gripping her shoulders with passionate intensity, "Bones... Temperance, God I love you!" he laughed, looking to the sky.

She let out a shocked laugh, "Booth, as much as I appreciate the significance of you moniker, I think you should simply stick with Bones... or Temperance. Despite my inital anoyance with the term, I have grown quite fond of _Bones _over the last 6 years." She smiled sweetly.

He gave a guttural, throaty laugh and pulled them to their feet into a fierce hug. Lifting his hands to frame her face, he smiled a most glorious smile, "_Never_ change, Temperance, never change"

**And... there you go! Tis all. Please hit review on you way out and thank you for flying with etakkate!**


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